Turkish Ravioli, or Turkish Manti are delightful lamb and beef dumplings topped with a traditional tomato sauce. It’s the perfect dish for special occasions.
Enter the enchanting world of Turkish Manti, a dish that delights both the eyes and the taste buds. These delicate pockets of tender dough, carefully crafted and packed with a delicious blend of seasoned ground meat are nestled in a bed of tangy yogurt and drizzled with melted butter infused with fragrant spices.
This Turkish ravioli recipe will have you mastering the art of this classic Turkish food. Whether you are a seasoned food explorer or a curious gastronomic adventurer, Turkish Manti promises to transport you to the heart of Turkiye, where ancient culinary secrets merge with contemporary flair.
Unlike traditional Turkish street food like beef kofta and casual dishes like pide bread, Turkish ravioli is an involved dish that’s usually served up for special occasions. And when it’s brought to the table, a guest knows that they are being treated well.
About Turkish Ravioli
Turkish Manti, also known as Turkish Ravio is an extremely popular dish in Turkiye. And for those looking at following a Turkish ravioli recipe for the first time, be warned, this dish is one that requires a little bit of time and care.
But if you make Turkish Manti correctly, you have a dish that is one of the highlights of Turkish food customs. In fact, Turkish Manti is a dish that, uniquely, shows that less is sometimes more.
In Turkiye, manti is a popular dish for special occasions. And typically, the smaller the portion that is served, the more highly your host perceives you. The reason is the time and care that goes into making these lamb-stuffed dumplings.
The roots of the dish can be traced back for centuries. In fact, there’s a debate as to whether these dumplings had their beginnings in China and found their way west, or if they were first created in the Middle East and then moved outward from there. Either way, Turkish Manti has a history dating back at least as far as the 13th century, possibly even earlier.
What makes Turkish Manti unique among ravioli dishes is a mix of lamb and beef along with aromatic seasoning, served on a bed of yogurt. The tanginess of the yogurts wonderfully complements the richness of the meat filling. The entire dish is then drizzled with melted butter mixed with paprika and earthy spices to create a rich, delicious meal that is worth every moment of effort.
Traditional Turkish ravioli recipes vary across the different regions of Turkiye. Some opt for a vegetarian style while others pair the meat filling with spinach and feta cheese. Whether you’re traveling in Istanbul or Bursa, you’re not likely to find two Turkish manti dishes that are exactly alike. But it’s a sure thing that if you’re eating Turkish ravioli, your host thinks that you’re something special.
How To Make Turkish Ravioli
Making the Manti
Making Turkish Ravioli begins with the dough. The simple mixture of flour, eggs, salt, and water makes the basis for the dumplings. After stirring to thicken and then kneading the dough by hand, it’s ready to be formed into the shells for Turkish manti.
Once your dough has been made, roll it up into a ball and let it sit beneath a damp towel for 30 minutes.
The manti filling combines lamb, onion, parsley, and salt. Quite often, traditional manti will be prepared with a mixture of lamb and beef, which I personally prefer. Chop and prepare your ingredients and mix them all together in a bowl.
Once your ingredients are mixed, cut the rested dough in fourths and, working one piece at a time, roll the dough as thin as possible, aim for 1/16th if you can. Keep the other dough pieces under the damp towel while you work.
With a knife or pizza cutter trim the rolled dough into small squares. There’s a story in Turkiye that you should be able to fit 40 manti on a single spoon. I’ve never seen this done, but if you want to give it a shot, be my guest!
Personally, I’ve found that working with dough squares around 1 1/2 inch squares makes Turkish ravioli easier to make.
Once your manti dough is sliced, put a dab of meat in the center and fold the four corners of the dough around the filling. Firmly press them together with your fingers in a pyramid shape to seal them closed.
Making the Turkish Manti Sauce
Let’s face it, when it comes to any pasta-style dish, the true magic is in the sauce. This is no different for Turkish Ravioli.
Throughout Turkiye, you’ll find many different styles of sauce. Some call for heavy butter, others spiced oil, while others call for a more traditional tomato base. Whichever method is used, it always comes down to a thick, whole-milk yogurt that gives Turkish manti its signature tanginess and creaminess.
For this Turkish Ravioli recipe, we’re going to stick with the classics and use an authentic tomato sauce blended with butter that mixes the rich flavors of the meat with the crisp freshness of the tomato acids. All of this gets pulled together by the tangy yogurt.
The manti sauce recipe uses crushed tomatoes, pepper, and butter, mixed with a few signature herbs and spices that bring this sauce to an aromatic finish.
